


Assist Me

by bromanticheartmates (justmagnusbane)



Series: Starker Stories [3]
Category: Iron Man (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe, Spider-Man - All Media Types, The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types
Genre: Iron Man 2 Rewrite, M/M, Peter is Tony's assistant, Sexual Tension, to a degree
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-04-14
Updated: 2019-09-10
Packaged: 2020-01-13 06:18:42
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 6,799
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18463220
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/justmagnusbane/pseuds/bromanticheartmates
Summary: What if Natasha Romanoff hadn't infiltrated Stark Industries on behalf of S.H.I.E.L.D in Iron Man 2? What if it was Peter Parker?Based on the prompt:"how about a starker story with peter being like natasha in iron man 2 and tony being incredibly smitten with his new assistant"





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This is only a one-shot for now, but I love the idea of assistant!Peter so there will almost definitely be more chapters!
> 
> [I dont have a beta so all mistakes are my own]
> 
> ENJOY

Even with the suit, there were certain liabilities that Tony couldn’t risk to take. And being untrained in at least some hand-to-hand combat was one of them.

When he’d originally asked Happy to spar with him it had been more of a joke, but the security guard took it to be the gospel. Just as he did with every other task Tony had ever given him, Happy threw himself in 110% and the two had been training together semi-frequently since.

It was a Tuesday, not particularly bright out, and the approaching change in Stark Industries leadership had Tony feeling a little stressed. Not because he didn’t trust Pepper, he did – with his life. But signing away his company regardless of who it was to, along with the looming shadow that was his second life as Iron Man, it was safe to say he needed to release some stress.

He and Happy were busy sparing, Happy kitted out in protective padding ready for Tony to punch. Tony was dressed more casually than normal, opting more for comfort than style. The hood of his jacket was up, covering a mop of sweaty black hair.

The pair were dancing around each other, both trading hits when Pepper arrived.

“Bring it in”, Tony said quietly to Happy as the larger man swung a punch and Tony dodged. He stepped to his right, throwing his own punches.

Slowly, Pepper’s voice registered around the large Malibu gym room.

“… here. Can you please come sign the transfer paperwork?”

Tony continued to work with Happy, aware of Pepper entering the room and setting her stuff down behind him. He and Happy continued to trade jabs until Happy swung once more, Tony dodged, and landed an admittedly hard elbow to his security guard’s face.

Happy grunted, recoiling.

“Sorry”, Tony said offhandedly, shifting on his feet.

Happy glared at him, his eyes wide. “What the hell was that?”

“It’s called mixed martial arts”, Tony said, looking away as he jumped rhythmically in place. “It’s been around for like… 3 weeks-”

“-It’s called dirty boxing, there’s nothing new about it!” Happy argued, before waving the older man toward him. “Come on, come on.”

Tony distantly registered the sound of another person entering the room and it wasn’t the clipping of Pepper’s heels. Used to the constant flow of people in and out of his house, Tony didn’t react, and raising his hands in preparation. It was only Happy’s inability to look away from said newcomer that made Tony pause.

Happy punched his arm lightly, nodding behind him with a look of both shock and confusion.

Tony frowned, looking over his shoulder.

The young man who had entered the room couldn’t have been more than 25; he was tall, almost 6 feet of smooth skin and curves. His long legs crossed the room quickly.

Tony froze, staring the man down. Feeling his gaze, the newcomer looked up and Tony was left entirely speechless.

The boy – man, Tony correct himself – had sharp features offset by the softness of his eyes. His brown hair was thick and untidy on his head, but looked almost artfully bedridden.

He looked like he’d just woken up.

Or just had sex.

Tony felt his blood boil at the latter, and when his eyes met the younger man’s he had to force his mouth to remain closed. The brunet had an almost coy smile on his face, but simply bowed his head and continued on his way to Pepper.

Speaking of, Pepper was saying something, but for the life of him Tony couldn’t seem to get his senses to focus. They had honed in so completely on the supermodel that had just waltzed into his gym and seemed reluctant to leave.

The man opened a black, leather-bound folder and held it out towards Pepper. Passing her a pen, he spoke softly to her under his breath and Tony felt distinct resentment for the fact that he couldn’t quite hear what the man was saying.

Pepper smiled softly, listening attentively to the younger man. Tony couldn’t tear his eyes away.

Clearly that had irritated Happy, who hit him around the head with his heavy gloves. Tony spun to face him, mildly annoyed at having been interrupted.

“Lesson one”, Happy began condescendingly. “Never take your eyes off-”

Tony ignored him, leaning backwards and darting his leg out to kick the man backwards. He followed it up with a few hits to the protection over Happy’s stomach, before the larger man tapped out.

Tony could feel the eyes on him from behind, and puffed up his chest just slightly as he turned around to meet the stranger’s eye. He quickly grabbed his water bottle; his throat burned and he needed something to do with his hands. He wanted to run them through the brunet’s hair so desperately.

“What’s your name?” Tony called across the room, leaning slightly against the rope of the cage he and Happy resided in.

The brunet looked up, his face serene and peaceful. “Peter, Peter Parker”, he said softly.

Tony felt the corner of his lip raise and nodded once. The man’s -Peter’s – voice was even nicer than he’d pictured.

Feeling unsure where to go, Tony gestured animatedly to the ring. “Front and centre. Come into the church.”

He quickly turned away, refusing to meet Pepper’s judgemental gaze. He subsequently didn’t see the small smile that branched across Peter’s face.

“No, you’re seriously not gonna… ask him”, Pepper said, speechless.

Peter rocked forward on his feet, clutching the binder to his chest.

“If it pleases the court… which is does”, Tony said simply and without room for debate.

Peter smiled as he looked over at Pepper. “It’s fine, really.”

With a tight smile, Peter approached the ring.

“I’m sorry, he’s… very eccentric”, Pepper said tersely. She was evidently unsure what to do.

Peter reached the ring, and carefully took one of the ropes into his hand. With surprising flexibility and grace, he ducked under and stepped inside.

Tony was frozen, eyebrow raised as he panned Peter up and down. As Peter straightened up, their eyes met and Tony couldn’t stop his gaze from dropping obviously to the younger man’s lips. Peter stood straight, but did so slowly. It was almost seductive how he never removed his eyes from Tony, their gazes heated and heavy.

The billionaire grit his teeth slightly, his throat dry again. Raising the bottle to his lips and taking a large gulp, he refused to drop Peter’s gaze.

The brunet met the challenge easily, his lips curling into a soft smile.

Tony felt distinctly hotter than even the training had made him, his skin clammy. A moment or two passed between them in silence, the room entirely motionless, as Tony finished drinking.

He lowered the bottle reluctantly, his eyes darting between Peter’s eyes and his mouth.

“Hi.”

Peter raised his eyebrows, clearly amused. “Hi”, he said softly.

Tony nodded sharply, attempting to force the thoughts swirling around in his head out of his ears. He looked down and away at his feet, stepping awkwardly. Never before had Tony felt awkward and unsure around a beautiful person, in fact he tended to thrive around them. This particular man however, seemed to captivate him in ways he hadn’t felt since first meeting Pepper.

Speaking of her, Tony’s caught her eye momentarily. The blonde looked confused, but there was an air of disapproval around her.

Tony couldn’t contain his smirk. He hoped the heat in his cheeks wasn’t as noticeable as it felt.

He looked up once more at Peter, whose lips were turner at the corners in a smile. Tony immediately looked away, feeling like an embarrassed teenager caught staring.

The silence grew too much even for him and with a quick nod and an instruction of “Can you, uh, give him a lesson?” to Happy, he darted from the ring.

“No problem”, Happy said distantly, saddling up to Peter but not before casting Tony a conspiratory look.

Tony hurried away towards Pepper, ignoring the eyeroll she gave him. He could hear Happy and Peter speaking quietly behind him in the ring but pointedly didn’t look back.

He sat himself down beside Pepper, crossing his legs immediately. He dropped the bottle beside him, “Who is he?”

Pepper sighed. “He is from legal, and he is potentially a _very_ expensive… sexual harassment lawsuit.”

Tony folded his arms defensively. “I need a new assistant, boss.”

“-If you keep ogling him like that. Yes, and I’ve got three excellent potential candidates that are lined up ready to meet you.”

Tony shook his head minutely, eyes locked on where Peter was elegantly removing his shoes and standing opposite Happy. “I don’t have time to meet, I-I need someone now. I feel like it’s him.”

Pepper looked up from her phone, deadpanned and exasperated. “No”, she scoffed. “It’s not.”

Tony looked away, smiling. He watched Happy and Peter interact for a moment before he felt a drive to speak up- anything to get the brunet to look back at him.

“How do you spell your name, Peter?”

Peter looked back over his shoulder, the move making Tony sigh as it perfectly highlighted the rippling muscle of his legs and the firm curve of his ass. Who wore such tight trousers to work?!

Peter looked bizarrely amused, as though he knew exactly what Tony was doing. “P-a-r-k-e-r. Parker.”

The assistant watched as Tony typed quickly away at the glass coffee table in front of him, the screen glowing a faint blue as multiple files and pictures popped up. He smirked when he noticed Tony pause contemplatively on an artistic shot of him from his Instagram profile. The picture was of him, on the dock, in his swimming trunks. Peter wasn’t blind to how flattering the photo was, his abs and biceps tight and visible.

Tony shifted minutely and Peter was so distracted by it that he didn’t hear Happy approach.

It was only because of the tell-tale shot of electricity up his spine that Peter even apprehended Happy but in moments he had caught the older man’s hand, twisted it, wrapped his ankles around his neck and flipped him onto his back.

He could hear Pepper shout in surprise from across the room, but his sensitive ears focused on the pleasantly surprised gasp from Tony.

Peter quickly released his opponent, flipping gracefully onto his feet. He caught Tony’s eye as he landed and the billionaire looked thoroughly impressed.

“Now that’s what I’m talking about”, Tony said teasingly as he approached the ring.

Peter, despite his common sense telling him otherwise, smirked and leaned toward the older man across the ropes dividing them. Tony looked up, startled, but the smile on his face clearly indicated that he was pleased with Peter’s brazen behaviour.

Tony kept his eyes on Peter’s as he quickly tapped the bell beside the ring, hearing Happy grunt. “TKO, Peter wins.”

Peter stepped out of the ring with the same grace that he had entered it, his breathing not even a little broken from the exertion. He blindly slipped his shoes back on, shifting his shirt back into place and stepping toward Tony.

Tony turned to face him head on, and their eyes locked again. Why the pair couldn’t seem to look away when their gazes met baffled him, but he wasn’t exactly complaining.

Peter sighed but were it not for the slight dropping of his shoulders Tony wouldn’t even have noticed. There was another moment of silence between them, the only sound Peppers mutterings of disbelief and Happy’s grunting as he straightened out his back.

Eventually, Peter took one more step closer and opened his mouth to speak.

Tony raised his hand, interrupting him. “You ever been trained before?”

“No”, Peter responded, shifting his weight from one foot to the other. His eyes finally darted away from Tony’s, but they ran across his face. “Just… always been very fit.”

“And flexible”, Tony noted innocently. Were it not for the intensity of his stare, Peter might have suspected the billionaire was simply impressed, but the nature of his gaze made it clear that Tony was as much attracted to him as Peter was.

Peter nodded slowly, the tension between them only deepening. “Very.”

Happy coughed quietly, clearly attempting not to be too harsh to save either man the embarrassment. Peter reacted immediately, bending down to pick up the binder he had discarded upon entering the ring.

“I need your impression”, he said, opening the binder.

Tony smirked, narrowing his eyes. “I don’t know, you’re an old soul, ridiculously flexible, very-”

“- I meant your fingerprint”, Peter interrupted, his cheek tensing as he forced himself not to smile.

The moment was broken, and Peter stepped back to direct Tony to the page in front of him.

“Right”, Tony said sharply, quickly stamping his newly inked thumbprint on the box Peter indicated to. He looked up at Pepper as she approached, “Hey. You’re the boss”, he said as he pointed to his fresh fingerprint.

Pepper’s cheeks were pink as she smiled.

Only the sudden slap of the binder closing pulled Tony’s attention from the blonde, and he looked Peter over appreciatively. He seemed a little tense and Tony hoped beyond anything that it was because he was jealous.

“Will that be all, Mr Stark?” Peter asked pleasantly.

Pepper laughed beside him, “Yes that will be all, Mr Parker.”

Peter nodded, ducking his head and quickly leaving the room. Tony followed his exit with his eyes, appreciative of the view. Right before Peter turned the corner to leave, he looked back, and his coy smile made Tony’s chest ache with heady desire.

“I want one”, he said simply as he watched Peter leave.

Pepper turned to him, smirking. “No.”

 


	2. Tentative

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tony sees Peter Parker again and can't take his eyes off of him. But will any attempts at flirting be successful?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Took me ages to write again after Endgame, so sorry about that everyone! I was emotionally traumatized and then had exams so this is a lot later than originally planned. 
> 
> I'm not entirely happy with this chapter but hope you enjoy the snapshots of their developing relationship!

The next time Tony saw Pepper’s new assistant was, much to his disappointment, was at a Stark Industries Gala event that Pepper had been hassling him about for at least 3 months prior. The night before she had burst into his Malibu home, and thrown a dry-cleaned Armani suit into his arms- or should he say his face. In the proceeding 20 minutes, she had managed to force him both literally and figuratively into a corner and he had caved, promising to attend.

Had she told him in advance that Peter Parker was going to be there too, no bribery would have been necessary.

Tony had sauntered into the event with his usual swagger, the confidence he exuded thankfully making it so very few people had the balls to approach him. He had bypassed the important dignitaries and businessmen of the night, resolutely avoiding the gaze of one Agent Coulson in the back of the hall, and headed straight for the bar. After obtaining his drink, he had turned around to rest comfortably against the edge of the bar and survey the crowd around him.

Pepper was talking to an older man, his skin dark and his head bald. Rather ostentatiously – if you asked Tony – he was wearing a floor length leather coat and an eyepatch over one eye. His curiosity peaked, but when he saw how Coulson hovered obediently around the other man, he resolutely swore to avoid interaction with the pair at all costs. He owed S.H.I.E.L.D. a bit of a debt after helping him with Obadiah and frankly he wasn’t in the mood to start paying reparations.

Instead his eyes followed the crowd until they lingered on the back of a man dressed form-fittingly in a navy-blue suit. He had tousled brown hair that sparked a hint of recognition in Tony, and broad shoulders that tapered off into a slim waist. He wasn’t tall, but the perfect height that should Tony approach, he would have to look up just slightly to meet his eye. When he turned slightly to the side, Tony straightened up immediately.

Peter was evidently busy, shuffling papers around in his hands and carefully balancing an StarkPad on what looked like, quite literally, the tip of his finger. His face was scrunched adorably in concentration, his teeth running across his lower lip regularly.

He was completely oblivious to his surrounding, or at least that’s what Tony thought until he began to approach. When he was no more than a meter or two away, Peter’s shoulders hitched up slightly and he spun to face Tony with a smile. Tony forced down the frustration he felt at the fact that said smile was so obviously a placating, work smile and not a genuine one.

“Mr Stark.”

Tony sidled up beside him, leaning against the wall and crossing his legs over. His hands fell comfortably into his pockets as he smiled charmingly at the younger man. “How many times am I gonna have to ask you to call me Tony?”

“At least once more, as always, Mr Stark” Peter said kindly, his lips curling just slightly at the edges. Tony cheered internally at the improvement.

“You know I’m technically your boss, right? So, if you don’t call me Tony, I could get you fired.”

Peter rolled his eyes, turning back to his papers. “First of all, Miss Potts would never let you because I work for her, not you. And second of all, Mr Stark, I don’t suspect you would fire me because I refused to be influenced by power. Isn’t that something that would be useful in your company?”

Tony nodded contemplatively. “Gotta have people with a spine, people I can trust, I guess. Can I trust you, Peter Parker?”

“Miss Potts can”, Peter said firmly. “I suspect that’s reason enough for you.”

“She does tend to have good judgement, I’ll give you that”, Tony conceded with a smile. “Then again she chooses to be around me so really… her judgement can’t be _that_ good.”

Peter turned his body just slightly, so that he might half face Tony and half face the StarkPad he had carefully set on the small countertop in front of him. His smile was small but, if Tony didn’t know any better, flirtatious.

Peter turned his head and looked up at Tony through his lashes. Tony cursed internally, shifting where he stood as his face grew hot. Never in all his playboy years had a random assistant been able to make him blush, normally he was the one causing red faces.

“Mr Stark”, Peter began, his voice noticeably breathier than before. “Should I be offended by that?”

Tony’s eyebrows furrowed uncontrollably and he recoiled just slightly, taken aback. “God no”, he said, dazed. “Everything I saw to or about you is definitely never something to be offended by.”

Peter smirked just slightly, bowing his head. Tony cleared his throat awkwardly, attempting to reconstruct his usual persona. Peter turned back to him, observing silently. “How are you finding the night, Mr Stark?”

“It suddenly just got a lot more interesting”, Tony said confidently, his typical bravado back. “How about you, Mr Parker?”

The assistant raised an eyebrow at the title, but didn’t acknowledge the change. “Public events have never been my thing”, he admitted somewhat sheepishly. “But I can’t say that the music isn’t good.”

Tony allowed his attention to turn from Peter to the DJ on the other side of the room. His ears focused on the music, managing to decipher the song. His lips quirked into a grin. “Which one of you put this song on the list?”

Peter laughed, “That would be me. Pepper asked for a playlist that included all genres of music, including enough rock songs to get you moving. I think she wants you to dish out a dance invitation or two; socialising is the point of these events, correct?”

Tony acknowledged the teasing, his smile widening in surprise. He settled more comfortably against the wall, leaning towards Peter just slightly. “Black Sabbath is hardly a band you can dance to.”

“No”, Peter relented, “not with that attitude.”

Tony took a deep breath, straightening out and fixing his tie. He held out his hand to Peter, raising an eyebrow in challenge when Peter scoffed and looked away.

“I’m flattered, Mr Stark”, Peter said sweetly. “But I’m the new guy, and I’d really rather not start some questionable rumours before I’ve had a chance to prove myself.”

Tony refused to give up, shrugging. “If anyone starts anything, I’ll fire them.”

Peter watched him for a moment, his eyes roaming Tony’s face with a strange fondness to them. His smile was not unkind, but Tony wasn’t blind to the sympathy he saw there. “You really don’t know how to solve a problem without throwing money at it, do you?”

Tony seemed shocked at the words, frowning. His hand dropped to his side. “I’ll have you know I managed to get out of that cave without any money involved whatsoever.”

Peter stumbled slightly, clearly having been lost in thought. Tony suspected that he hadn’t even meant to say it out loud, and now was definitively regretting saying such a thing to his boss’s boss. “Oh my Go- Mr Stark, I’m so sorry. That was incredibly rude.”

Shaking his head, Tony shrugged again. “Don’t sweat it, sweetheart. Seriously,” he added when he saw how Peter had curled up in distress. “I appreciate how ballsy you are. Why do you think Pepper’s still around?”

Peter relaxed just slightly. “Because you couldn’t function without her?” The gentle smile on his face made it obvious he was joking, and Tony appreciated the effort.

“That and I’m ridiculously attracted to people who don’t tolerate my bullshit.”

The words seemed to force a reaction from Peter, who straightened up immediately. He looked away, clearing his throat nervously. His hands scrambled to gather the paper and StarkPad in front of him, almost dropping the device.

Tony quickly ducked to catch it should it fall, but Peter managed to get a grasp on the StarkPad first. He looked at Tony, who due to ducking down was now perfectly level with himself, and smiled nervously.

“I-I should get back to work, Mr Stark.”

Tony stood back up, his eyes sweeping over Peter appreciatively. The man was even more attractive when he was flustered, if that were possible.

“No one around here is working besides you, Mr Parker. Why don’t you take the evening off and come and dance with me?”

Peter held the StarkPad and papers to his chest protectively. “Sadly, someone has to make sure this thing keeps running smoothly. Maybe Miss Potts is available for a dance?”

Peter turned to leave and, with a surprising amount of grace, weaved his way through the busy hall and away from Tony.

 

 

 

Tony hated sushi. He really, really hated sushi. He couldn’t necessarily explain it, after all growing up rich meant that he certainly hadn’t been lacking options. But the moment he had tried sushi when he was 14, he had immediately decided that it was the worst food on earth. Sure, he loved crab or lobster or any number of seafood, but sushi… it was a whole different story.

And so, the minute he noticed the foul smell of sushi upon entering Pepper’s office at the newly built Stark Tower, he recoiled. His attention was drawn immediately to the man stood beside Pepper’s desk, slouched over as he read what was on her computer over her shoulder. In his palm sat a small plastic container from which he ate sushi. Tony cringed, until his eyes met the man’s and he froze.

“Mr Stark”, Peter greeted kindly, nodding his head just slightly.

Tony couldn’t help by smile. “Hey new guy.”

“Hardly new anymore”, Peter said kindly as his eyes nervously flickered around the room.

Tony barely noticed how closely Pepper watched him but grew more aware of it as he moved across the room. He tore his eyes from Peter quickly, advancing towards Pepper’s desk. He pointedly chose to ignore the look she gave him.

“Pep”, he said as he joined Peter over her shoulder. He was aware of how Peter shifted just slightly to distance himself. “You called?”

Pepper nodded, turning back to her computer. She closed down the window that had previously been up, but something in it caught Tony’s eye.

“Wait”, Tony said suddenly, “What was that?”

Peter shifted uncomfortably beside him, likely because Tony’s sudden movement shifted him closer to the younger assistant.

Pepper shrugged, “Nothing, just some security footage I was asked to go over.”

Tony frowned. “Security footage? What the hell is Spider-Man doing on our security footage?”

“Tony”, Pepper sighed, pointedly ignoring his attempts to restart the footage and instead pulling up an email. “It was just a kid dressing up, don’t worry about it-”

“-Well why were you asked to review footage of a kid-”

“-Mr Stark, it was actually me who asked Miss Potts to review the footage”, Peter piped up as he set his sushi on the desk. “I wasn’t sure whether to approach security about the situation so I brought it to Miss Potts to get her opinion.”

Tony looked across at him, eyebrows furrowed. Peter seemed unsure, like he knew he had to tread carefully going forward; Tony distinctly got the vibe that Peter was lying to him. Pushing back his doubts, Tony nodded once before turning back to the screen.

“Okay”, he said simply. The look Pepper gave him was a knowing one, as though she was aware, he was choosing to ignore the obvious deception from his employee.

Peter seemed aware of it too, and took a tentative step closer to Tony. Whether it was due to newfound respect or simply an acknowledgment of his kindness Tony didn’t know, but either way a small part of him relished at their closeness.

“So”, he began with a deep breath. “What did you want to show me?”

Peter seemingly took that as his queue to leave, gathering his food quietly and heading to the door with a polite nod to Pepper. “I’ll get on the email to Mr Abraham now, Miss Potts. Tony”, he smiled genuinely at the billionaire, “Have a good day, Sir.”

“You too, not-so-new guy.” At Pepper’s look of disapproval, Tony snorted. “Mr Parker.”

Peter grinned and nodded once before leaving, the door swinging behind him.

“Should I be expecting a sexual harassment lawsuit soon?” Pepper asked from beside him, her eyebrow arched in disapproval.

Tony turned to her, having forgotten her presence. He scoffed unnaturally. “Of course not.” At her look, he groaned dramatically. “Oh, shut up.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Let me know what you think and if you want to see more!


	3. Flirtation

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Peter and Tony grow closer, and Peter finds himself giving in.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> SOrry for the long wait; during summer my mental health always declines and, as such, so does my motivation and productivity. But I hope you guys enjoy the update regardless <3

It seemed strange, but after their chance sushi encounter, Peter Parker seemed to pop up considerably frequently in Tony’s average day. He wasn’t complaining – actually far from it – but the assistant’s presence in his day had ultimately become distracting. Much to his own dismay, Tony found himself coming into work on time, just to see the content smile pulling at Peter’s lips when he bumped into Tony on his usual rounds to get Pepper coffee at 8:25. He had started to order lunch regularly, just because he loved when Peter carried in his meals with a look of faux exasperation. He even found himself sitting at his desk and actually doing the work Pepper emailed him, simply so he could burst into her office with the excuse of having done it all, and engage Peter in mindless small talk before Pepper inevitably chased him away.

Peter seemed cagey. Perhaps it was just his personality, but it seemed as though he was unsure how he felt about Tony’s keen interest. Sometimes Tony would catch the younger man smiling out of the corner of his eyes or stifling a laugh when Tony said something particularly shrewd. He was half-convinced that the young man had even taken to using any excuse to come to Tony with information, sometimes something as simple as just “hey, did you see they’ve gotten rid of the tater tots in the staff canteen? You should speak to someone about that.” And yet, for every smile, there was a nervous smile and a step backward to create distance.

And if that didn’t make him even more intriguing then Tony didn’t know what would. The brunet was so damn interesting that Tony craved his attention with the same ferocity that he craved a drink at the end of the night.

Something he was determined he could somehow rope Peter into.

Despite Pepper’s original plans, Peter was slowly becoming a part-time assistant for Tony as well. He was frequently seen darting between the pair’s offices during the day, likely spending as great a deal of time with Tony as he was with his _actual_ boss.

With their more frequent interactions came a tentative relationship; they were by no means as close as Tony desired, but Peter had developed brass confidence with Tony that took most people years. He wasn’t afraid to call Tony out, and the respect that gained him from the billionaire had slowly aided their budding companionship.

“Allison?”

Peter sighed, “Nope.”

“Abigail?”

“No.”

“Alice?”

Peter slouched forward with a sigh, his hands resting on the tabletop of the clear glass desk in front of him. “Mr. Stark-”

“Ah ah”, Tony interrupted, holding his finger up immediately to derail the younger man’s sentence.

Peter sighed. “Mr. Stark”, he powered through, ignoring Tony’s look. “You really should try learning the names of your close business associates. _Angela_ Brand will be here tomorrow at 9 am. Please make sure you’re here then too.”

Tony smirked, but it melted into a full-blown grin when Peter rolled his eyes in response. “When am I _not_ on time?”

“Last time I set up a meeting at 9 am you walked through the door at 4 pm”, Peter said as he straightened up and began to collect his things from Tony’s desk.

“Ah, but see I was distracted then because I had a sudden and urgent meeting with a maniac wielding an electric whip”, Tony said, jumping from his seat to follow the younger man towards the door.

Peter nodded. “Which is why I rearranged said meeting with Miss Brand for tomorrow at 9 am.”

Tony quickly pressed his hand to the door, stopping Peter from opening it to leave. Peter stopped suddenly, his arms tightening around his folder. “Mr. Stark?”

Tony edged around him just slightly, peering around at the assistant’s face. He grinned at what he saw. “I knew it. See? You hate that I do it but you can’t help but find it funny?”

“Excuse me?”

“You’re smiling. You might hate me but you find me amusing at least. Admit it” Tony smirked, allowing himself to fall against the glass door. He crossed his arms across his chest, bowing his head to observe Peter closely.

Peter’s lower lip twitched, which Tony was starting to realise was a subtle indicator that the man was impressed. “Mr. Stark, I most certainly do not find you inconveniencing everyone _funny_.”

Tony sighed, “You’re tough, y’know.” He leaned his head back against the door, his eyes traveling slowly over Peter and watching him closely. “Hard to get a read on you.”

The brunet nodded slowly, almost thoughtfully. “Whatever you need to know about me is written on my resume, Mr. Stark. I can email you over a copy if you’re so keen to read up on me?”

The startled laugh that escaped Tony’s lips made Peter visibly jump, but his face settled into one of neutrality when he saw Tony chuckled into his hand. The corner of Peter’s lips quirked just slightly, a clear sign he was forcing back a smile. Tony preened inwardly, proud of himself.

With a final sign and a fond smile, Tony nodded and relented. He pushed himself from the door, stepping aside and allowing Peter to duck out of the room. He grinned when he saw the smile on Peter’s face as his employee darted around the corner down the hall.

 

In the following weeks, Tony’s schedule was tightly packed and he rarely had any time to find excuses to see Peter. He often passed Pepper and the assistant through the halls in Stark Tower but it wasn’t until 2 weeks before his birthday that he saw the younger man for more than 5 minutes at once.

“Tony”, Pepper said, clearly exasperated. “This is ridiculous. Just answer the question.”

“Ah but there are multiple potential answers to this question, Pep. You’re gonna need to be more specific.”

She shook her head, the blonde strands flying over her shoulder. Her hands took up residence on her hips, and Tony could see Peter wince at the action over Pepper’s shoulder. It made the corners of his mouth raise in a rueful smile.

Peter noticed, and immediately glared. The look Tony received was clearly one of disapproval, but Tony didn’t care. With Peter’s attention solidly on him, Tony used the opportunity to smile at him.

Peter seemed momentarily taken aback- perhaps surprised that Tony was _smiling_ and not simply smirking. Tony seemed soft, maybe even fond.

As Pepper continued to speak, Tony was forced to look away. His friend’s voice slowly came back to him, the piercing sound of her berating him making him groan internally.

“Pep, it’ll be fine, okay?”

“-No, Tony. No, this isn’t fine. Do you think I don’t have a million other things to do besides plan your birthday party? And you don’t even want to help me out just a little by answering the simple question of _what you want?”_

Tony gaped at Pepper, unsure what to do with her stress. She was clearly overwhelmed, and Tony made a mental note to find a way to lessen her workload.

“Miss Potts”, Peter said quietly as he approached. He seemed confident around Pepper, clearly very familiar with her, and yet someone still less so than when dealing with Tony. “I’m more than happy to take over the party planning. You’re right; there are far more important things for you to deal with.”

Pepper paused, clearly hesitant on how to proceed. She nodded slowly. “Yeah, yes. Yes, okay. Thank you, Peter. Remind me to give you a raise”, she said as her panic returned and she began to dart around the room gathering her things.

Peter smiled placatingly. “Oh no, that won’t be necessary, Miss Potts.

“Not necessary but not unwarranted, Mr. Parker. I’ll leave you to it?” She asked as she paused at the door, her arms full with folders. She nodded once to Tony.

Peter’s eyes followed her direction, landing on Tony for a moment before he nodded frantically. “Oh yes, of course.”

Pepper nodded once more and without another word, and only a glare sent in Tony’s direction, she hurried down the hall and away from Tony’s office.

Tony turned to Peter, his grin returning. “So, Mr. Parker. Do tell me, what should I do for my birthday party this year?”

“How old will you be, Mr. Stark?” Peter asked not unkindly as he allowed himself to gently lean against Tony’s desk.

Tony, from where he sat in his desk chair, seemed pleased. “I’ll be 40.”

“So, a big one then?”

Tony scoffed. “I still feel 21.”

Peter’s eyes fell to the bourbon tumbler that sat on Tony’s desk, half full. “I’m sure”, he said, shooting the older man a look.

Tony laughed, looking down at his lap. “Not but… I don’t know if this should be as… colourful as my usual celebrations.”

It was Peter’s turn to scoff now. “Mr. Stark, I would never volunteer to organise anything as ‘colourful’ as your usual celebrations.”

“Understated it is then”, Tony said nodding. “Any ideas?”

“I’m assuming you’re not wanting to draw attention to the whole ‘40’ thing?”

Tony shrugged. “It’s my age, isn’t it?”

Peter paused, observing Tony in silence. He seemed lost in thought for a moment before he quietly spoke. “Yeah, it is.”

Tony dared not move, lest it break the heavy eye contact they were sharing. “I tell you mine, you tell me yours?”

Peter’s held tilted adorably as his nose scrunched up in confusion. “You really have never looked at my resume, have you?”

“Nope”, Tony said without a hint of regret. “I prefer to learn about you, rather than read about you. Lot more personal that way.”

Much to Tony’s surprise, that didn’t appear to affect Peter in any particular way. Normally, it would be now that the younger man withdrew and stepped away from the situation. Now, however, he only raised an eyebrow.

“Personal? Since when are we ‘personal’, Mr. Stark?”

“Well, we aren’t. But we certainly would be if you decided to answer my questions… ever.”

Peter took a deep breath and Tony was momentarily distracted by the rise and fall of Peter’s chest. Even through his shirt it was clear that the younger man was well defined. It made Tony’s mouth water.

“25”, Peter said softly, his eyes vacant as they darted between Tony’s eyes and what he could only assume was his mouth- or his chin, of course.

“25?” Tony repeated, his eyebrows arching.

“Surprised?”

“That you’re not younger, honestly.”

Peter nodded, “I’ve been told I have a young face.”

“Not a young mind, though”, Tony said simply. “Why is it that you’re an assistant again? You could run this entire company with that brain of yours.”

Peter smiled. Tony suspected that it was rare for Peter to receive genuine praise for his intelligence. He would be sure to do so more often.

“Seriously. Don’t think I didn’t notice that you corrected a note I sent to Pepper.”

Peter finally broke their eye contact, looking away nervously. “My apologies, Mr. Stark.”

“Don’t apologise”, Tony said immediately. “Someone would have found the mistake eventually, you saved me the embarrassment of people thinking I missed it.”

Peter smiled ruefully. “Ah I see, so you just don’t want to be called out on your mistakes.”

Tony leaned back in his chair, the white leather seat leaning backward easily. He crossed his arms across his chest and allowed his feet to rest on the edge of his desk. “On the contrary, I love it when you call me out on my mistakes.”

“Me”, Peter acknowledged the condition with a small twitch of his lips.

“You”, Tony nodded like it was no big deal.

Peter suspected that to Tony Stark, it wasn’t. He was a man dripping with confidence, and it took very little to acknowledge his attraction to Peter.

Something about that revelation made Peter… angry. Angry that, to him, that confession would take almost every ounce of confidence he had. In a fit of defiance, Peter refused to back down.

He leant forward on the desk, his wrists bent. He kept his eyes firmly on Tony’s lips as he spoke, but kept his attention on Tony’s reaction. “Why me, Mr. Stark?”

Tony shifted, dropping his legs and sitting forward in his chair. There were only mere inches between their faces.

“I don’t need to answer that question, Mr. Parker.”

Peter frowned, cocking his head to the side. Finally, he smiled. “You don’t”, he agreed. He pushed himself back on his hands, taking his weight off of the table. He kept his gaze on Tony, but this time raised it to his eyes. Peter allowed his own eyelids to drop slightly, looking at Tony through his lashes.

“Call me if you have any party requests, Mr. Stark.”

Tony felt a deep shiver down his back at Peter’s breathy voice. The assistant clearly knew what he was doing, and was utilising Tony’s attraction to him in every conceivable way possible.

“I have one now, actually”, Tony said when he saw Peter turn to leave the room.

Peter paused before he spun gracefully to face Tony once more. The smile on his face wasn’t subtle anymore and was instead large and fond. “Yes, Mr. Stark?”

“Now this is an absolute must, you really can’t forget this one”, Tony said as seriously as he could muster.

Peter nodded, taking out his StarkPad and taking the stylus into his hand. He looked up, waiting patiently for Tony to expand.

“The guest list”, Tony said simply. “Top of the list, the utmost importance that you send off this invitation.”

Peter quickly scribbled something, before meeting Tony’s eye once more.

Tony smiled softly. “Peter Benjamin Parker. Please ensure he gets his invitation.”

Peter hesitated, his lips curling. “Mr. Stark, I’m required to attend as staff… I-”

“Well make sure that you let Mr. Parker know that he has that evening off. And that I would be delighted if he chose to spend said night off, in my company. Perhaps he’ll even call me Tony outside of hours.”

Peter seemed unsure but after a pregnant pause, he finally nodded. “I’ll… be sure to let him know, Mr. Stark.”

Tony nodded, his smile widening as he watched Peter leave.

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks to lala for the request.
> 
> If you have any requests please leave them in the comments below!
> 
> Let me know if you'd want to see Peter as an undercover S.H.I.E.L.D. Agent or just your everyday assistant (hiding a secret Spider-themed superhero identity). Or both!


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